One of those Knights
by Prose Vanity
Summary: It was supposed to be a fairy tale.
1. Chapter 1

**Ashy-note** Sudden stroke of inspiration. Writing this while half sleepy, apologies if it isn't as good. (: Short and sweet and a little ridiculous but I'll leave it at that. :D I know it's wrong to write another fic, given that I already have so many to update, so in effect I'll have to temporarily stop some of them, but I'm keeping this one! :D

-:|:-

**One of those Knights**

Prologue

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><p>"Mikan!"<p>

No reply.

"Mikan, good grief, wait!"

The nineteen-year-old girl ran out of sight, leaving behind her heeled shoes on the ground. He picked it up and sighed. A giggle reverberated through the air to his left. His head followed soon after and in no time, he was back to chasing the perpetrator of the sound.

_Ridiculous_, he thought balefully to himself as he pushed his legs to go as far out as he could.

Everyday the troublesome princess always managed to stir him up some new sort of meddling problems and Tsubasa Andou Sakura wasn't happy about it at all. It wasn't easy chasing after a hyperactive royalty, for crying out loud! Well, of course she was a stand-out, she was beautiful and kind and brilliant and that much was for sure, but if everybody thinks the heiress was as prim and proper as she is when she comes out in public well they were damn _wrong_. In fact, they were so wrong it almost felt to him like he was insane, because this girl he was running after had to be someone else other than the pretty princess of Alice.

He noticed that his footsteps were the only ones he could hear now and he just swore. _Damn. I lost her again._

He dug in his brain for a new alibi to cover up for the princess's sudden unexplained absence.

Sometimes his sister can be such a _huge_ load to bear.

_Why do I always have to cover up for her?_ Tsubasa thought grimly, settling down the foot of a huge oak tree. He took off his boots and rested his lungs as he breathed in the air around him, calming himself down. Narumi, their tutor, would be wandering around the greenhouses again, so he might not care where she went at all… Jinno has an advisory meeting, so he won't be much of a problem… His father, the King, was asleep as always, and his mother, the queen, was always interested in hearing where her daughter's escapades lead to so she wasn't really that much of a concern as well…

_Huh_, he smiled. _Seems I have no one to offer and alibi on._

Then again, he didn't really have to offer anyone an explanation because he was, after all, crown prince.

He roamed his navy-blue eyes once around his surroundings before pulling down his hat over them to get some sleep, dangling his boots high over his head as a signal for his sister in case she got lost. The pursuit sapped out all the remaining energy he had left of him that his stupor was so complete he could have slept there for days and he wouldn't even feel anything else.

He was prepared to doze off already when he heard the unmistakable squeal of the young one herself.

"Na—Natsume? No! No, you can't be serious!"

Perked up by his curiosity (although being dragged down a bit by his lethargy) he took a few steps forward towards the direction of Princess Mikan's voice.

Just by the clearing ahead she saw her standing in front of a young man who was down on one knee, holding a ring in his hand. She had her hands clamped over her mouth and yet the glee never failed to escape her throat—she was squealing, the tears in her eyes evident.

He was stripped of all traces of sleepiness. _Hyuuga Natsume, proposing?_

The world had definitely gone way round and over the belt.

He snuck closer and watched the proceedings.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness, but it is not I who asks for your hand," came Natsume's reply. Mikan's gleeful face turned to stone. "You have completely mistook my intentions. I am here to propose to you as a servant, in behalf of the man who chose you as his bride."

"What's with the formalities, Natsume?" she coldly asked. "Who sent you and for what purpose has he done so? If he wishes to marry me he could at least do me the small honor of proposing _himself_."

"It is from my best friend, Crown Prince Ruka Nogi of the Western Kingdom."

Tsubasa gasped, the look on Natsume's face silencing him.

There was utmost despair on the young man's features, almost as if saying _Please say no, please say no_.

"And if I refuse?" Mikan asked.

Natsume looked to be steeling himself to say something, but the silence grated on the princess's nerves.

"Answer me, Lord Hyuuga."

His answer took Tsubasa aback so much so that he actually squealed and jumped out the bush, but the image of the look on Natsume's face drove all other thoughts from his mind.

"I shall be executed, m'lady."

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><p><em>Dark monarchial fic. There's more to this than appears, and I swear if you say you'll like this I'll keep this going. (:<em>

_~Ash._


	2. Chapter 2

_Ashy-note_ I kinda like this story, but I hope no one compares it to any other similarly-themed stories here at FFN. Enjoy! (:

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><p>His footsteps echoed all over the chamber rooms as he went his way towards the dark figure that sat on the large throne on the other end. He was trying to calm his heart down; it was loud enough to be heard like a drum. On one shaking hand he held the letter written up by the Yukihira princess, one the other a parcel, a gift of appreciation from the same.<p>

The stark darkness of the night penetrated his spine. It was colder than ice.

"Your Majesty," he said when at last he came to the foot of the throne; he kneeled and raised both hands to offer the things he held, "—the reply from Princess Mikan of the Yukihira kingdom."

The dark figure, no more than just a shadow, shifted.

"And what does she say?"

"I'm afraid I don't know, Majesty. She has written her reply in this letter. It is yours to read, and your question is also yours to answer."

"Very well." He felt a hand grab hold and slowly take the letter from his right.

The package on his left was unnoticed, and so he brought it to the man's attention. "Majesty, she has also sent you this."

"I know, Hyuuga, don't take me for an idiot."

He sucked in a deep, irritated breath and waited impatiently. If this man weren't royalty, he may have already thrown the parcel into his face.

It took the man quite some time to read the letter, but throughout its duration he heard mutterings of displeasure. There were several times when the man also yelled out blasphemous words, and when he had done with the letter, he threw it aside and grabbed the box, opening its lid hurriedly.

Curiosity got the better of him and he stood up, only to see that inside the box, a glittering crystallized sakura petal sat primly, its light slowly filling up the dark room. The glow grew stronger with every second they took to staring at it. Its pink color seemed to throb with life, and the dark red veins that ran all over it looked to him as if it were teeming with life, pumping blood around the petal.

The man in front of him cursed again. "My King, what is it?"

He closed the lid of the ornate box and buried his face in his palms, sighing. "It seems she is smarter than she appears to be," he mumbled. "I need advice, Hyuuga."

The questions in his head seemed to multiply. "I am always at your service, My King."

"This little princess has agreed to the marriage proposal."

His heart stopped. The man looked past him, not quite seeing anything from the physical world.

"However," he continued, snapping out of his trance, "—there is a catch."

He let out breath he didn't know he was holding.

"She wants—" he grabbed the letter he threw and read again, "—in her words, '_One of those Knights of yours to be sent here to my kingdom to act as your representation throughout the next two cycles of the moon, which I shall spend in arranging matters regarding the fusion of our kingdoms particular to your proposal.'_ See what a cheeky little monster this little girl is?"

"I see so, My King," he supplied dully, more out of reflex than though. Personally, he could not help but think how brilliant she had become. He smiled a small, proud smile to himself.

"She has also—" he reached for the box he put on the table beside him, "—sent _this_ as proof of her staying true to her end of the deal. She says this is a magical petal which holds her very heart, and that I should take care of it whilst she is away from me."

_No wonder it had looked so real, _he thought to himself.

"So now, I have a little query."

His head of black hair bobbed up. "Yes, Majesty?"

"I was thinking of sending you." His eyes rounded at the King's words. "Yes, you'd like that wouldn't you? Especially as the young Princess was your former flame…"

He bowed his head. "She has since been an object of affection, but I will not interfere with Your Highness's plans."

"No, no," the man jeered, flipping over the lid of the box in which the petal was kept, and standing up to tower over him. "I think you will do perfectly well for the job. What do you say?"

"I will do as Your Majesty says."

"Oh, well, how stupid of me, of course you'd want that, wouldn't you?" The light from the petal was strengthening. "Yes. Well, I have decided. You shall be sent, as she desires you to be, I know. But on one condition."

_There is a catch_, he thought_, of course there had to be some sort of catch._

"What is it, Majesty?"

He flipped the lid shut again. "Well, it is rather simple. You go there, you fall in love with her all over again, she falls in love with you too, and then my plans go to rubble. So when you find you've fallen in love with her again, I kill you. But if she falls for you, well…"

Like a delusional person, he flipped the box open again, took out his dagger from his side, and made to slash the petal. He couldn't help the reflex that came next.

He ran forward and grabbed tight hold of the man's — the King's — wrist.

The King laughed. He let go and quickly went down and knelt. "Forgive me, Your Highness, I did not mean such imprudent action."

"Oh, it's all fine, Lord Hyuuga," he said, closing the box and putting back his dagger to its hilt. "You get the magnitude of the problem."

"Yes, Your Highness."

He sat back down the chair. "You shall be executed, of course."

The surprise flew through him like a skilled swordsman's sword through his chest. "What, Majesty?"

"Oh, calm down, you'll have to look like you've been killed. I shall put out news of your execution by treachery, so you may go to the Princess as a different man. Let's see… I'll put you under the name of Lord Kazikawa, what say you?"

He swallowed a lump in his throat, a lump of pure loathing, before biting out a cold, "Yes, Your Highness."

The man clapped his hands and said, "That's all. Pack your bags, you're leaving later today! You're dying later today as well!"

He turned around and all but ran towards the doors and out into the dawn breaking.

In a few hours, he shall be killed.

In a few hours, he shall be born again.

As Lord Sumena Kazikawa.


	3. Chapter 3

"Your Highness, Your Highness!"

Suichiro Shouda watched as his newfound stable boy ran clumsily towards the carriage that had just passed his house. He was no more than a peasant boy, that silly Tatsuhiko, but whatever it was the kid was up to, he did not care at all. As long as he kept the horses fed, he didn't care what business Tatsuhiko had with the Royal Carriage. Granted, he rather started to dislike the boy due to the amount of attention he seemed to be showing his daughter, Sumire, but he could live with that. The boy seemed to know what he wanted anyway.

Although it did intrigue him a bit...

* * *

><p>The carriage came to a halt and the footman approached him. He yelled. "Sir, I need to speak to the Princess, it is urgent news!"<p>

Before he could come any closer, the footman shoved his large fists into his face. He felt the fresh, warm blood flow from his broken nose, and yet before he could even make another move, another blow was delivered to his stomach.

"Never interrupt the Princess's carriage, you low creature," hissed the footman.

Doubled over from the pain of both blows, Koko glanced up and saw the livid face of the footman who had, quite literally, placed his foot on his chest and driven him to the ground.

"Stay your hand, Sir Kitsuneme," a voice said from within the carriage. "This man does not do me any harm, unlike you and your flaring temper."

The guard looked taken aback at the Princess's admonishment of his deed and in a stutter he tried to justify himself. "But My Lady, he was in your way—"

"No more than we were in his."

The guard, Kitsuneme, reluctantly stepped off Koko's chest and the peasant stuck a tongue out at the knight just as the curtains were pushed aside and the Princess appeared. Koko abashedly reeled in his tongue and stared at the regal, proud face that looked back at him unflinchingly. He held his ground. "M'lady, I dun have anythin' to say to you that willn't be worth your time, I promise."

_He seems strangely familiar, _he heard her think. Her hazel eyes softened. "So I can see." She opened the carriage doors, much to Kitsuneme's surprise, and stepped out. "The ground is no place for any man. Get up, Sir."

"M'lady, I am a man but I'm afraid I'm no Sir," Koko replied, hastily getting to his feet and dusting his dirty clothes before kneeling again, smiling at the irony of his statement. "Though I do believe every man deserves to be called 'Sir' because after all, it's a male address. Why only call Knights as sirs? I'm a man, I have a sizable—"

Koko caught himself just in time; the guard hissed violently in reaction to his cut-off speech.

The peasant raised his wide brilliant topaz eyes to meet the Princess's amused ones. Upon meeting her gaze he promptly turned puce and bowed low enough for his nose to touch the ground. "Forgive me, m'lady. I'm afraid I have a mouth that runs away with its own two feet—or thirty-two, if my teeth are anything to go by."

Princess Mikan regarded him for another long minute before finally breaking out into a laugh. "You amuse me, Sir…?"

"Yome, m'lady, but if it please your Highness I'd rather you call me Koko, without the 'sir' that makes it all sound so preposterous."

The guard squawked in defiance but the Princess laughed all the more. Her hazel eyes looked at him thoughtfully for a moment before she broke into a wide smile. "What is it that you wish to tell me, Koko-kun?"

The _–kun_ part made Koko blush madly. Peasant he may be, but blind he most definitely was not, and to be addressed so by such a pretty princess was enough to make even a burly man turn to mush. Recalling, however, the information he held within him, he recovered his wits and said solemnly, "M'lady, it would be best if I told you within the confines of your carriage."

The footman, Kitsuneme, looked scandalized. "You have the _nerve_ to ask for a private audience with Her Highness? Why you insolent—"

"Of course, Koko-kun," the Princess cut through Kitsuneme's rant. "Would you mind changing your clothes, however?"

Koko looked confused but the Princess merely smiled on. "No, Koko-kun, it isn't arrogance or the fact that your clothes are soiled. I do not mind. But we _are_ going to a royal engagement party, and I believe you would want to look your best for the delegates of the Western Kingdom."

The stunned (and stupid, quite frankly) look on Koko's face was enough to keep the princess laughing for longer than necessary. Quickly, Koko scrambled to his feet and dashed away to get dressed.

He returned a little later and clumsily clambered into the carriage. When the Princess laid her eyes on him, she couldn't help but feel a little surprised. Koko was wearing a handsome set of robes emerald robes sewn together finely. She could see the hints of gold lingering in the threads, and when she looked up to Koko she couldn't help but appreciate the fact that a little washing up went a long, long way. It wasn't being judgmental on her part, it was just the idea of a peasant, like Koko, wearing such rich clothing when in fact mere minutes ago he was wearing rags... He entered the carriage and as Kitsuneme closed the door rather vehemently, Koko immediately dropped the peasant facade and began talking to her.

"You look dashing, Sir," she commented, in spite of her confusion and apparent surprise. He only nodded in bashful acknowledgment. To be called "dashing" by Her Royal Highness just took it out of someone.

"Your Highness, I am afraid I have terrible news," he blurted out after a few moments' silence. Deciding it would be best if he told her the news bluntly, praying it would lessen the impact, he went on. "I have been informed early today that Sir Natsume Hyuuga has been executed yesterday morning on the grounds of treason."

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><p>He glanced around the throne room, waiting for the prince to make an appearance. The light was slowly crawling up the windows as the sun shyly peeked from behind the mountains that surrounded the Western Kingdom, and the orange rays were beginning to embrace the town. He walked to the nearest window and looked out at all the people in the streets below. The whole kingdom was waking up, and the busybodies were walking along, ready for a new day. There was, however, the tiniest hint of mingled grief and fear among the faces of the people he so dearly loved. He did not have to think of the reason for their wariness: the news of his execution yesterday was not well-received by everyone.<p>

He always wondered why he held such strong affections for the vast lands. Since childhood he always found himself wanting to be the ruler of the kingdom, to try and set things right what other kings and queens made wrong. It was for this reason that he studied and worked hard to become a part of the Royal Council. He wanted no more than to set the West back on its feet again, to bring back its glory from the lost ages.

His crimson gaze fell on a cart of oranges close to the castle gates, and the old man he presumed was selling it. Old Fargo, he remembered his name. He always bought oranges from Fargo ever since he was a little kid. His mother loved oranges.

But the thought of oranges always led to his Mikan. _How are you holding up now? _He wondered how she must have felt when she heard the false news. He had sent one of his closest friends, the son of Takashi Yome of the Elder Council, to the Eastern Kingdom to break the news to her, and he sincerely hoped the idiot would be smart enough to pull it off, but he knew the news would be hard on her. He felt his heart crumble when the prince read the letter out loud and he found she agreed to marry the prince of the Western Kingdom for his sake, but the thought of her crying just made him want to burn everything to a fine, black crisp.

_I'm coming for you, Mikan, _he thought wearily.

His thoughts continued to run wildly across his mind that he was rather surprised to feel a hand on his shoulder. Out of reflex he turned and was about to grab the hand until he saw the dark red hair and green eyes. Quickly he fell on one knee and apologised. "Your Highness, I did not hear you come in, I'm sorry."

The prince chuckled at his reaction. "You know, you're pretty easy to startle, Hyuuga. You've been drinking too much tonic, I suppose. Then again, I can't blame you. The pressure of dying must be too great, eh?"

Natsume did not know what to reply, but it seemed the prince did not need one.

"Is everything set?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

The prince nodded in satisfaction, and then turned around to leave. Natsume made to stand up and follow, but the prince turned back and spoke. "Oh, you may also want to go fetch your animal-loving best friend. He's coming with you."

The prince smiled sinisterly as shock crossed Natsume's face. "Ruka is coming with me to the Eastern Kingdom?"

"Of course he's coming with you, you idiot," the prince snickered, albeit a little miffed by Natsume's question. "Isn't he supposed to be '_Crown Prince Ruka Nogi of the Western Kingdom'?_ She's going to marry him, for crying out loud, of course he's coming!"

Stunned, Natsume nodded and bowed, then headed for another exit at the opposite end of the large hallway that led to the bedroom where the real prince of the Western Kingdom was kept imprisoned.

It had been a quiet coup four years ago, as Natsume recalled clearly. He was at the Eastern Kingdom when it happened. He had been away for thirty-six cycles of the moon, moving from the North to the South and then the East, as his final stop; he had been sent away to study each of the three kingdom's systems and methods of trade, including their genealogies and the percentage of Alice wielders among their populations. He left the kingdom under King Francois' rule, and the entire west was living a rich and fruitful life. When he came back, he was met with a withering economy and a new "prince" — the embittered son of King Francois's brother had claimed the throne, the King was dead, and his son, Ruka, had been kept hushed as Kuonji – that was the fake prince's name – started to take over the entire west. They retained Ruka's title as Crown Prince, but he was no more than a puppet. His best friend had been reduced to a small cowering figure left inside the walls of his room to rot while a maniacal excuse of a royalty pulled the strings from behind.

Until now he blamed himself for not being there when his country needed him.

He approached the wooden doors with caution and knocked in a sequence that he and Ruka agreed to when they were kids. No sooner had he completed the fifth knock when Ruka's face appeared and he found himself engulfed in his best friend's – almost brother, really – embrace. He returned the gesture and quickly pushed Ruka into the room, locking the door as he went in. His eyes took in all it could, from the plush bed to the well-adorned tapestries and the colourful curtains, and the trapdoor with the ladder that led to the barn below where Ruka spent most of his time and Alice whiling days away with his animal friends.

Ruka sat back down on the bed and hugged his knees. At twenty-two, his best friend seemed to have grown as much as him. Although a little tired and careworn, he could see the marks of Ruka's father's kind face, and his blue eyes were exactly the same as his mother's, from what Natsume saw of the portraits scattered all over the castle.

"I missed your company, you idiot," said Ruka, getting off the bed and grabbing a tin can full of biscuits. "It's hard to keep a sane head when all you've got are animals."

His red eyes sparkled in amusement and amazement. Ruka, despite four years of incarceration, seemed to have stayed the same. No matter what Kuonji had done, his friend's spirit remained unbroken. "How have you been?" he asked as Ruka munched away on the bed, scratching his white bunny behind the ear.

"Not much worse," Ruka mumbled through a full mouth. "Since they killed Father they can't do anything that would affect me much worse anymore." The rabbit hopped off the bed and went straight for Natsume. He bent down as the rabbit stopped before his hand and he scooped it up to his arms. "Usagi seemed to have missed you, Natsume."

"Can't blame the poor guy," he gruffly said, "I haven't seen you in ages, I was thinking you'd be looking like a hermit by now. Guess I'm wrong."

"Well, if Kuonji-san is good for one thing, it's keeping his... ah... _guests_ well cared for."

"Why do you still call him 'san', Ruka?" Natsume grunted as Usagi nipped his finger affectionately. "He killed your father, took your throne, and abandoned your kingdom, and you _still_ put an honorific at the end of his name."

"I suppose..." Ruka sighed. "I suppose it's because I don't want to treat him like scum. If I do then it doesn't make me any different from him."

As Natsume listened to Ruka's response, he couldn't help but feel a wave of awe for the forgiving heart his best friend had. After all the suffering he was made to experience, still Ruka managed to keep his heart clear of any tainting that would have poisoned anyone else's already.

Natsume's musings were interrupted by Ruka. "What brought you here anyway?"

Settling Usagi down, Natsume looked straight into Ruka's eyes and said, with a little smile on his face, "Pack up, Romeo, we're going to the Eastern Kingdom to meet your fiancée."

* * *

><p>When Natsume told him to go to the Eastern Kingdom three days ago to deliver to the Princess news about his execution, Koko knew he had to do it carefully. He and Natsume were close friends, as close as anyone could ever get to the elusive youngest member of the Royal Council of the Western Kingdom; all those years of knowing the guy, however, weren't enough to prepare him for the sorrow and the indescribable pain and fear that ran through Natsume's mind as he told him what he was supposed to do.<p>

"But why?" was the first thing out of his mouth when Natsume explained the details. "Why do you have to die and then be resurrected as someone else? It seems too stupid! C'mon, Mikan will know it's you before you even get the chance to tell her your fake name!"

"That's why you have to go tell her yourself, you idiot," Natsume breathed out. "If she hears from anyone else she'll flip, and she's a _royal_, we both know how she's not allowed to react so differently from what society expects of her. She accepted Kuonji's fake marriage proposal thinking she was to marry Ruka just so she could save me from being killed. If she hears a different version of the news, a version blown up to disastrous proportions by the townsfolk's love of gossip, I seriously doubt her mind would be able to control her feelings and I'd be damned if she declares war against the Western Kingdom." _I love her, _he thought afterwards, _but I can't risk this kingdom burning to ashes because of her decision._ "So you have to go to the East and pretend like – like you're a peasant, I don't _know_, just do something to make her stop and listen to you. Kuonji plans on spreading the rumour the morning after the execution, which is a day from now, so you should get going. I only ask these three things of you, Koko. Please."

After he let out the words he had been made to say, he let it hang in the air for a while. The princess was stunned, and as he read her mind, he found there was nothing in it except Natsume's face.

"That..." Her voice was weak. "That can't be true."

Koko said nothing. The first of Natsume's three favours had been granted, and now he was waiting for the second.

The princess's expression rapidly changed from alarm to anger. "I agreed to the conditions. There was no ground for them to have him executed."

A thought flashed through her mind, and Koko smiled at the fulfilment of the second task. _And now for the third one._

"He's not dead, Your Highness," he croaked. "Natsume is alive and well."

Her hazel eyes glared at him in confusion. "What? A moment ago you said he was executed, and now you tell me he's alive? Are you messing with me?"

As Koko read her thoughts once more, he realised there were mistakes in life which he could live through and fucking this up was not one of them. _Damn, _he thought, _either killed by a Knight or murdered by a Princess._

"Explain yourself, Sir," Mikan bit out cruelly, "or else I shall order Sir Kitsuneme to continue what he was just _itching_ to do earlier on. Perhaps even more than that."

Koko gulped, but amidst the threats Her Highness had been throwing at him, he still had to deliver favour number three. Putting on his most executive voice, he delivered the message that was the last of his duties to his friend. Natsume's fire was more fearful anyway. "Your Highness, my name is Tatsuhiko Yome, Second Knight of the Royal Knighthood and son of Takashi Yome of the Most High Elder Council of the Western Kingdom. I come here on the orders of Sir Natsume Hyuuga, First Knight of the Royal Knighthood and Fourth Adviser of the Royal Council, to inform you that he has been falsely executed in order to give birth to a new identity under the name of Sumena Kazikawa. This identity is what he shall be known as when he comes to your kingdom, under the conditions you have dictated in your letter acknowledging Prince Ruka Nogi's offer of marriage in order to unify our kingdoms. He has asked me to prepare you for his arrival. He requests that you not make it obvious that you know of this particular bit of information as he believes it will endanger your life."

The Princess's hazel eyes bore deep into his, searching, perhaps, for some sign of betrayal. He stared back, unflinching, making it clear he had no harmful intentions whatsoever. "How do I know I can trust you?"

At her question, he actually laughed. "Goodness, Mikan, just because I say my whole name doesn't mean you have to actually _forget _me, you know. I get that you don't like Tatsuhiko, but that's my father's fault."

Her nostrils flared at his casual use of her name. "You dare speak my name—"

"Goodness, Mikan, calm down, it's me, Koko!" He rolled his eyes at what he always thought was her royal arrogance. "For heaven's sake, did I change so much? I mean, I know I've grown more manly these past four years but _ouch_, man, you forgot all about me? Now_ that _is just wrong."

"Koko!" For a moment she lost her poise and leaned over to grab a fistful of his hair to look straight into his eyes. "Koko, what the _hell_ do you think you're doing? Why are you here? Koko! So Natsume really isn't dead? I don't get it at all!"

"I'm actually doing Natsume a favour, although clearly it's a little more than that now," he grimaced as Mikan broke into a wide smile and pecked him on the cheek. "And no, Natsume isn't dead, and yes, you can relax now and blabber on about everything to me. So... what's up, Sunshine?" He smiled widely at her and she looked out the window, the smile loitering around the corners of her lips.

"Other than I want to stone you and Natsume and that bloody arse Kuonji to death, you mean?" She laughed a little and he watched as she relaxed into a more casual posture. "Nothing much. I'm headed to Town to attend to Lady Yura's engagement party."

"Wait, _Yura_ is getting married?" Koko couldn't believe his ears. "I thought she saw her future?"

"Well apparently there are things you couldn't actually know about," Mikan giggled happily. She turned to face him, her face suddenly serious. "What happened since you guys left four years ago? Your departure was pretty abrupt."

Koko sighed. "Natsume told you about the coup, didn't he?" She nodded, but kept silent. "Well, we came back to the kingdom. Kuonji had taken over, Ruka's father was killed, and Ruka was kept imprisoned in his room. The one who sent the request for your hand in marriage was Kuonji."

Brown eyes darkened at the news. "He's planning to merge the kingdoms, I figured just as much," Mikan mumbled. "But why Natsume? Of all the people he could possibly have sent over, why Natsume?"

"I really don't know either," said Koko. "He probably knows we were all together during the four-year tour of the four kingdoms, he probably even knows of our Academy years. He might even know about you and Natsume. I really don't know, Mikan."

She looked at him, her thoughts quite blank, but as she opened her mouth to speak once more, the carriage came to a halt and the doors opened.

"We are here, Your Highness."

Mikan assumed her "royalty mode" as he liked to call it, and when he went out, he held a hand to her and they both stepped into the red carpet leading into the Otonashi mansion. There were dozens of formalities observed, and Koko couldn't help but feel a little annoyed at all the strictures being put upon Mikan. He could read her thoughts, and they were pretty benign, but he also caught snippets of frustration and annoyance mirroring his own.

After the recognition of the arrival of the princess, Mikan and Koko sat down and quietly talked about anything and everything, their conversation occasionally interrupted by a random guest saying hi or greeting Mikan and trying to steal a few moments of self-glorification and bragging rights when their neighbours come to ask about their latest "meeting" with the Princess herself. Mostly they talked about Ruka and Natsume and Hotaru and how the West was doing now, but they were careful not to give away too much. They had a lot of catching up to do, but they both knew that there would be enough time for that. At one point they actually decided to talk about the weather (it was a long-standing joke between them that small-talk rarely ever did anything good), but the rest of the evening was spent in mindless conversation and random bouts of jokes.

Koko could read her mind, however, no matter that she was a Nullification Alice. He supposed it was because of the training they had in the academy, and that over time her Alice had learned to recognise his. In any case, he could see the occasional worry stain her happy thoughts. Worry for Natsume, worry for Ruka, worry for her kingdom...

_Kingdom._ There it was again. If there was one thing Koko hated most about both Natsume and Mikan, it was their sickening dedication to the countries they grew up in. Mikan was often clumsy and outspoken and a little stupid at times; Natsume was always calm and collected, although harsh and a bit on the grumpy side. In many ways they were so different, but both of them always had the same burning passion for their kingdoms.

Sometimes Koko couldn't help but think that maybe they would even give their lives up if it meant a better life for the rest.

The bride-to-be approached them and Koko's thoughts were stopped by what he heard within Yura's mind. His brown eyes widened in shock as he watched Mikan turn a graceful head, but he was unable to stop Yura from telling her what she had just seen. Yura Otonashi just had foresight.

And Yura Otonashi's predictions were rarely wrong.

"Mikan, where are the King and Queen?" he asked her warily. Yura's grey eyes looked to him, thankful for the chance to not say it aloud.

"Hm? They're at the vineyards picking grapes with the kitchen staff, why?"

Koko held her hand and squeezed it tight. She saw the fear in his eyes. "Because a group of Alices are on their way to your vineyard. They're coming to kill your mother and father."

* * *

><p><em>Let's all face it, "Koko" was never Koko's real name anyway. Long update, but I hope you guys think it was worth it!<em>

_~Ashy._


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